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Aussie coal producer acquires new project
McCullough Robertson and Gilbert + Tobin have advised on an acquisition between coal producer Whitehaven and the Winchester South coal project.
Emma Musgrave
Firms: McCullough Robertson (Whitehaven); Gilbert + Tobin (Whitehaven)
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Deal: Whitehaven has been advised on its acquisition of a 100 per cent interest in the Winchester South coal project.
Value: $340 million
Area: M&A
Key players: McCullough Robertson partners Damien Clarke, Louise Horrocks and Peter Williams led the legal team advising Whitehaven.
Deal significance: Winchester South is described by McCullough Robertson as a development project in Rio Tinto’s portfolio of Queensland metallurgical coal assets, which it has recently sold.
"Whitehaven initially acquired a 75 per cent interest in the project from Rio Tinto Limited in early June 2018 and acquired the remaining 25 per cent interest from Scentre Limited in a separate transaction shortly thereafter," a statement from the firm said.
"Whitehaven is Australia’s largest independent coal producer which has developed a strong portfolio of coal assets in New South Wales, with this acquisition being one of the company’s first significant investments into the resources industry in Queensland.
"McCullough Robertson provided end to end advice on the two transactions, covering due diligence and acquisition documentation through to completion. This acquisition demonstrated the firm’s market-leading expertise in the Queensland coal sector built off a long history of acting for project proponents and investors (both foreign and domestic)."
